The present invention relates to a dispenser niche for a refrigerator, in particular a household refrigerator, at which the contents of the refrigerator, such as ice or chilled water can be dispensed, without a door of the appliance needing to be opened.
A user standing in front of the appliance in order to remove cooled material generally casts a shadow over the niche with his body. Without an illuminating device in the niche itself it is thus often difficult to detect the fill level of a vessel placed in the niche and to terminate a dispensing procedure in a timely manner, when a desired fill level of the vessel is reached.
With the use of conventional incandescent bulbs as the means of illumination, the problem arises that an incandescent bulb with sufficient lighting output can be accommodated in the niche only with difficulty due to its dimensions. As a result of the high level of heat given off by the incandescent bulb, heat-sensitive parts must maintain a considerable safety-related distance from the incandescent bulb, which makes their incorporation even more difficult. Although halogen bulbs achieve better light yields coupled with compact dimensions, their high surface temperatures mean that it is scarcely any simpler to accommodate them than is the case with a conventional incandescent bulb.
As at best a single means of illumination can be accommodated, shadows may arise in the niche or the vessel placed therein, which even in the case of good levels of lighting render the correct estimation of the fill level difficult.